HOW many states does one need to have a solution to a conflict that no one really cares much about? Palestine and Israel conflict’s search for a solution has been on the table for so long that most talk about it but do not really have any real answer.
Most public opinions are very polarised with the pro-Palestinian lobby wanting ‘justice’ and some wanting revenge while the pro-Israel lobby hanging tough knowing that it has clout and the support from the west which matters the most. It has become a battle that may be symbolic of the global situation with the powerful states all lined up behind Israel and the less powerful ones behind the yet-to-be-established state of Palestine. And given that equation, there can be rallies and speeches, Facebook posts and media coverage of sufferings but the solution looks more far away than ever before.
West Bank loss and latest phase
THE West Bank and Gaza were invaded by Israel in 1967 and are now collectively known as the Occupied Palestinian Territories. Before this invasion, the West Bank was part of Jordan whilst Gaza was part of Egypt. Both areas remained under the full Israeli control until the mid-1990s, when the Palestinian Authority was created. The Palestinian Authority controls some areas of the Occupied Palestinian Territories, but other areas remain under Israel.
Many Israeli citizens have moved into the Occupied Palestinian Territories, living in Israeli settlements built after 1967. The Fourth Geneva Convention prohibits such practices although Israel argues that it is not applicable to the Occupied Palestinian Territories. In other words, the strong has got away with it.
‘Two-state solution’
THE most discussed solution to the conflict is a ‘two-state solution’. It basically means the creation of a Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza. Egypt has never claimed permanent sovereignty over Gaza, seeing its administration as temporary pending the reation of a Palestinian state whilst Jordan renounced its claim to the West Bank in 1988. Thus, Palestine has largely been left alone as a problem that can be settled only when no other option is left. And then, there is the internal Palestinian politics.
Fatah, once the sole leader and now one of the two leading factions in Palestinian politics, supports this initiative. Hamas, its militant rival, takes a more angry line. They claim the entire area presently covered by the state of Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories should form the future Palestinian state.
Western media have focused on Hamas and its terrorist activities forgetting that Hamas was birthed by Mossad, Israel’s secret service to counter the growing influence of Fatah, soon after the 1967 war. The Palestine Liberation Organisation of which Fatah was a leader was not an organisation but an umbrella outfit of many running from the Fatah of Yassir Arafat to extreme Left outfits like PFLP that ran both hit-and-runs as well as plane hijacking. The hijacking of a plane that was freed by a counter operation by Israel in Entebbe in Uganda is now part of the counter-terrorism cannon. Thus bad blood runs deep.
Why doesn’t two-state solution work?
TALKS between the Israeli and Palestinian administrations had occurred in 2013 but broke down in 2014 when Mahmoud Abbas, president of the Palestinian Authority and leader of Fatah, signed an agreement with Hamas. Since then, there has been no move and the latest round of violence is a by-product of many decades of politics that basically denies the two state solutions. On the surface, it looks nice but in reality it shows no future.
Force is the order of the day. Just as Israel took over territories by force, Hamas also seized Gaza by force in 2007. And right now, these two are the main players. And none else, including Fatah, matters. While some have called upon the global community-read the west to recognise Fatah and the territory it claims to represent it.
But the Palestinian Authority does not meet the criteria as it has neither a defined territory nor an effective or functional government. That can happen only when a state solution is reached, but then it has not.
Israeli position
‘AROUND 1,400 Israelis were killed by Hamas on 7 October, the biggest loss of Jewish life on any day since the Holocaust.’ This single sentence is enough to arouse sentiments against any peace talks in Israel with Palestine.
Israel’s response to those attacks was the killing of thousands of Palestinians, including more than 3,500 children, as reported by UNICEF. The conflict, despite many attempts at a ceasefire, continues and more bloodshed can be expected. So, if both the involved parties are keen on violence, it is not realistic to expect peace soon or ever.
For how long the conflict will go on or how bloody it will be one is not sure, but no one seriously cares as no superpower has a stake in it. Palestine is neither Taiwan nor Ukraine that the super powers will be involved. Conflict there does not raise oil or grain prices globally; so, chances of taking the business of bringing peace through one, two or many state solutions may not happen any time soon.
Afsan Chowdhury is a researcher and journalist.